My hearts beat faster
by dragonheartt
Summary: Universe C. Abby Maitland works at a zoo and lives alone in a flat in London. Until a dark-haired, dark-eyed man with a dimpled grin showed up practically on her doorstep, sealing something he explained to be a rip in time and space. Curious and bored with her life, Abby joins him... and things happen. :PRIMEWHO:


About: Basically, in Universe C (and in F, but that's a whole nother kettle of onions, so to speak), connor never existed at all. Literally. Abby exists, and has a mostly boring life until the doctor shows up. And this "dark haired, dark eyed man with dimpled grin", who has a unique dress style and a charming, dorky, kind personality is basically connor. as the doctor. yep. The Doctor's 12th regeneration looks,acts,feels,thinks,behaves just like Universes A, B, and H's Connor Temple.

I like my wibbly wobbly time/parallel universes stuff :3

* * *

He was lonely. River - Melody - had told him that he would be, eventually. She couldn't always be here to travel the universe with him. It didn't stop him from being a little meloncholy. The ponds had gone a long time ago, now. It seemed that way, at least. He knew they were okay, though. Amy had written a letter, and he'd found it, and read it. It had made him a tiny bit happier.

But now River was gone again, and so soon after his latest regeneration, and it was making him downright gloomy.

He didn't like gloomy, least of all on himself.

He wasn't ginger, *again*. Perhaps that was a good thing, he reflected. Dark hair, dark brown, soulful eyes, slightly overlarge front teeth (he looked like a bloody

child or something! He didn't mind; he quite liked the new look, actually), and a dimple in his cheek. River had told him he looked "adorable", and then she'd kissed him.

But that had been some time ago, and the Doctor was beginning to grow worried. He knew that at some point, she wouldn't come back, because in some point in the past, she had/would/will die. That was two regenerations ago, and thinking about it made his hearts ache painfully. So, he was slowly becomign more and more afraid that it was time.

And he hadn't had a proper good-bye of it.

The Doctor was sad.

* * *

_London, England; 2007; early spring; universe C_

Abby shivered in the chilly morning air, pulling her sweater around her tighter, trying to burrow into the soft fabric. She hadn't realized how nippy it would be

outside, and she couldn't exactly waste the time to go all the way back to her flat just to get a heavier sweater or a scarf. She would have to deal; that was what she did. No complaints, no weakness, no issues.

It had always worked.

She sighed, shaking the thought of Stephen Hart out of her head, and continuing into the zoo, flashing her ID card at the guard, and sweeping past, headed right for the lizard section.

She was, after all, the lizard girl, and lizards were infinitely easier to understand than humans, and especially boys.

The young woman brushed her short white-blonde hair (she died it a paler color than it naturally was, but beneath the snowy color was a pale shade of blonde) out of her face and continued on, waving absently at her boss, who offered her a brief smile before heading towards his office. Either that, or the elephant enclosures. Abby pushed aside the plastic in the doorway, touching the glass and smiling at two of the lizards. She'd dubbed them 'Brad' and 'Angelina', and so far, they had not taken a liking to each other in the least.

Maybe they were gay, eh? Either that, or she'd have to put on some music and get mood lighting and tell 'em to have at it. Maybe a candlelit dinner? Abby chuckled to herself as she got their feed ready and entered the enclosure, making sure the door closed behind her as she moved clsoer to the two lizards, putting out their food and humming lightly under her breath.

She loved her job, she really did. But sometimes, occasionally, her heart yearned for adventure. Some of the sort that her now ex boyfriend Stephen went on - all over

the world, fighting anacondas and traversing the amazon. That sort of thing. Too bad he didn't think she could take care of herself. She wouldn't have pegged him as

sexist, not in the least. She was strong, adn tough, adn she did not want to be told he didn't want to take her with him on explorations because she would 'slow him

down'.

The arse.

Abby shook her head, leaving that enclosure and heading for the next. Bob the Python tasted the air with his tongue in his enclosure.

* * *

_London, England; 2007; early spring; universe C [2 days later]_

The Tardis touched down in the city. Specifically, in front of a series of bare-faced flats that were probably much nicer on the inside than they were on the out. The Tardis automatically attempted to camoflauge… and just sort of turned a subtley different shade of blue and became a little more modern-looking on the outside of it.

He opened the door and stepped out, curious as to why he was here, at this moment. He closed the door, and looked around, taking a few steps in one direction and then turning around and doing it again, the other way.

A few minutes later, a shimmering appeared about five feet away, looking like glass had shattered ,the shards spinning around a undulating, glimmering surface. He immediately held out the sonic screwdriver towards it, and it beeped.

"Oh yeah, this is definately why I'm 'ere. Anomalies - rips in the time-space continuum! We-ell, I know what ta do with these!" He muttered with a flash of a bright grin, aiming the sonic at the Anomaly again, and watching as the shards slowly stopped spinning, shifting around until it formed a solid sheet of what looked like glass, and then it glowed for a moment, and vanished completely.

"I wonder if that's the last one?" He mused, tucking the sonic away.

"What the hell was that?!" A sharp, but beautiful voice snapped, and the Doctor twisted around to meet the bright blue eyes of a young woman with white-blonde hair.

Who was currently standing in nothing but her vest and knickers. He felt his cheeks warm, and told himself to stop it. 1200 year olds don't blush when confronted with a pretty girl in her knickers. Right?

"Ah, that was a rip in time and space that I've just taken care of."

She gaped at him.

"Oh, tell us another one." She told him, looking irritated.

"It's perfectly true." He defended, looking hurt. She had a hard time meeting the puppydog eyes.

"I don't believe you."

"That's alright, no worries there! I've taken care of it, so I'll be on my way now! Ta for it!"

He turned around and headed back towards the Tardis, pouting a little. A half-second moment of quiet, and then she sighed.

"Wait! Come back here, whoever you are! Okay, I'll buy it, yeah?" THe woman said, tone changing even as she spoke. He grinned in triumph, turning around to face her and almost skip over to. He looke dup at the girl leaning on her bannister, and smiled.

"I'm The Doctor." He paused. "How would you like to travel all of time and space with me in my blue box?" Her eyes were bright, mouth gaping again. "It's called the Tardis, and it's bigger on the inside than it is on the outside." He added, smirking a little. It was harmless smirking, honestly.

* * *

Abby stepped outside her flat to get her mail, and as she straightened up, mail clutched in a suddenly white-knuckled grip, her gaze went right to the man in front of a shimmering light… which then pulsed and vanished, leaving spots before her eyes.

She didn't want to believe him, because then she would have to accept that the lurch in her stomach had been fear- and it wasn't, could not have been. She was not afraid of anything! Nor could she admit that she found the man before her, with his dimpled 60-watt grin and sparkling eyes, both sweet and infuriating at the same time, and she'd barely exchanged any words with him at all.

But fine, she wanted to know, didn't want him to leave, vanish from her life. Because, until now, there was nothing exciting, nothign new. And Abby wanted adventure and danger and everything!

"I'm Abby. Abby Maitland." She took a deep breath. "Okay. I'm more than half convinced you're absolutely barmy, but I'll go with you. I want adventure." She admitted, walking down the three steps and facing him.

He grinned at her again, and did a little dance that she was pretty sure she wasn't meant to see.

"Abby, I am definitely a madman with a box." She let that comment simmer, considering it. Well. All's for it, then!

"Can I pack a bag, or at least get dressed first? I don't fancy seeing the universe in my knickers and vest, Doctor." Abby said, tone a littel sharper than she intended, but the mention of her in her knickers made the man blush again.

Adorable.

Annoying.

Exciting.

He paused, blinking. "Uh, yeah, yeah, that would be good. You could always give it a try, though, y'know?" She shook her head at that, laughing even as she entered the flat, holding the door open.

"You might's well come on in, yeah? There's tea in the kettle on the stove and cups in the upper left cabinet, if you'd like some."

"Ah, sure, thank you Abby." He said, following her in and heading to the kitchen. He whistled as he looked around the flat. "Nice place." Well, he liked his Tardis, but it was quite a nice flat she had. Similar, actually. It was much larger on the inside than he'd assumed from looking at the outer.

Funny.

* * *

_Somewhere in the universes, at some point in time, several weeks/a month later in the Tardis._

Abby grinned across the inside of the Tadis at the Doctor, who grinned back. It wasn't all fun and games, and it was sometimes dangerous. She'd nearly died, he'd nearly died. He'd ended up having to save her from death and telling her he loved her as she dangled over a cliff, his hands gripping hers tightly.

Her smile vanished as she thought about that, turning around to wander to her room, humming a little under her breath.

They'd found another anomaly in earth, universe F, and it didn't have a team to deal with it, and were sat in a boat, arguing over how to best deal with closing it. A creature came through, and took Abby, and he'd been absolutely heartbroken.

He'd thought she was dead.

It was worse than loosing Rose, or River, or any that came before. He'd thought he'd been in love with River, and maybe he had. But this thing with Abby… it was so, so much stronger. And now, he'd lost her. He'd sat in the boat, sobbing, feeling both of his hearts shatter into a million pieces within him.

But then, the sonic screwdriver had beeped, and led him straight to a warehouse, where he'd found a boy in trouble. He'd saved him, left him Abby's Mobile and told him to call 999, and then ran off after Abby where the boy said she'd been taken.

He found her being menaced, got knocked into a pool of water, got back up and went through the rift in time and space after her, determined not to loose her again.

Found her at the bottom of the cliff, reached down. She'd grabbed his hand, the mer-like creatures were approaching. She'd told him to leave her, she didn't want to pull him over the cliff with her. But he'd made up his mind. He would not let her die!

The words "I love you!" were spoken by him, and then with monumental effort, the Doctor pulled his companion to safety. The two of them had run to safety, back thorugh, where he closed the anomaly.

The boy called The Doctor her boyfriend.

She snapped that he wasn't.

True, but it hurt to hear that, now. He could deal, though. She was alive, and that was what mattered.

That had been a few weeks ago now, and they hadn't spoken of it again, and Abby kenw she'd hurt him.

She just didn't know how to fix the mess. She was a horrible Companion. Maybe she should suggest he drop her back at home. Then she wouldn't be able to hurt him like

that again. Abby shook her head angrily at her own stupidity. She was being a coward! Running away from this problem, which wasn't even a real problem! The Doctor  
loved her! She loved him! She had to say it to him.

Just not now.

TBC?…


End file.
